March 6, 2023  

“Balance”…or a Beautiful Life? The Choice is Yours. | WT #42

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After working with leaders for years, here’s what I know: few authentic leaders are balanced, nor do they wish to be. Why? In my experience, balance is hard to achieve, because it’s unappealing to them. What’s appealing to these individuals is what they may describe as a “Beautiful Life.” Leading a beautiful life is an often forgotten idea. It’s doing great things in ALL pillars of your integrated life (which is grounded in understanding those pillars in the first place). If you’re only focused on doing great things in your business pillar, there’s no time to be a great spouse, parent, friend or spirit-filled person. Furthermore, they have crossed paths with far too many “successful” people who, despite outward appearance, led joyless, broken lives. “Balance” is for people-pleasers. Authentic leaders know better. That's why they choose A Beautiful Life.

This article was last modified on March 6, 2023 .

About the author 

Darren Smith

Darren Smith is Co-Founder of the Authentic Leadership Institute. He is a native Texan and a graduate of Dallas Jesuit and Texas A&M University. Over the past 25 years, Darren has visited 35 countries and led 100 strategy programs. He and his wife have five children.


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